Windmill.



UNITE STATES Patented November 8, 1904.

PATENT O FICE.

SALFRED FORNANDER, OF NEW YORK. N. Y.. ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO ANTHONY.SOHULTE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

WINDNIILL- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 774,168,dated November 8, 1904.

. Application filed June 18, 1904. Serial No. 213,107. (110 model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ALFRED FORNANDER, a

' subject of the King of Sweden and Norway,

residing in New York, in the county of New York and State of New York,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Windmills, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to windmills, and has for an object to providefor the generation of an electric current by a windmill.

In the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this specification,Figure 1 is a perspective view of a windmill embodying my presentimprovements. Fig. 2 is a central section of a generator and thewindmillshafts, partly shown in plan view. This figure shows the twoconcentric shafts of the windmill and also illustrates the applicationof an armature to one of such shafts and a field-magnet to the other,and Fig. 3 is a section a little to the left in Fig. 1 of the trunnionupon which the shaft --bearing' is supported and illustrates meanswhereby the current may be carried from the generator to the line-wire.

Similar characters of reference indicate like parts in the severalfigures of the drawings.

This invention has particularly in mind the doing away with gearing,shafting, and belting connecting wind-wheels with electric generatorsand provides for direct connection between the wind-wheels and themovable parts of the generator. It also embodies the feature ofutilizing a number of concentricallymounted wheels rotatable in oppositedirections. Such wheels are designated in a general way by 7 and 8,respectively, and each of which comprises a number of blades 9, mountedupon hubs 10. The blades on the respective hubs are set in oppositedirections, so that a current of wind passing through them will drivethem in opposite directions. One of the hubs, 10, is mounted upon ahollow shaft 11, having suitable bearing, and the other of which hubs ismounted upon a, shaft 12,

having a bearing within the shaft 11. The bearing-block is designated by13 and has trunnions, as 14, from its sides, which trunnions are mountedin a yoke 15, swiveled in a bearing 16 by means of a shaft 17 in thenature of a pin and which bearing-block is supported by a framework(designated in a general way by 18) and the structure of which frameworkand connected parts may be varied as occasion may demand.

Thisinvention has special reference to such a form of windmill as isillustrated in my United States Letters Patent No. 756,616, dated April5, 1904, for windmills, wherein the wind-wheels are moved out of thecurrent of air in proportion to the intensity thereof and the work to beperformed, and such movement by the wind may be accomplished by a vane20, supported by arms 21, carried by'a hub 22, fast upon the sleeve 23,which is connected with the bearing-block, and this vane 20 is disposedin a direction generally trans verse to the direction of the wind,whereby upon the wind increasing in velocity or force the wheels will bemoved to present their vanes with less driving-surface to the wind, andthereby reduce the force exerted upon them, thus automaticallyregulating the developed power of the wheels. It will be observed thatthe vane 20 is somewhat seg-- mental and lies below the vanes or blades9, whereby it will not obstruct the current of air passing to suchblades. In my aforesaid United States patent it will be seen that thereis provided a system of gearing whereby the rotation of the wheels bythe wind may be availed of for practical purposes. As is well knowngearing and shafting produce in use a certain amount of friction andloss of power, and the object of the present invention is to directlycouple a dynamo or electric generator to the shafts of the wheels. Thistask could be somewhat simplified were the shafts always maintained upona fixed horizontal plane; but as the shafts have a universal movement, amovement upon a horizontal plane to keep into the wind (the vane 20assisting in that regard) and also a movement upon a horizontal axis forthe regulation, it becomes necessary to employ features not heretoforeembodied in the application of direct driving for electric generators. Ihave therefore shown mounted upon the shaft 12 an armature 25, carryinga commutator-disk 26, and such shaft may be continued into athrust-bearing portion 27, having a thrust-bearing bushmg28, located ina bearing of the casing 29, which casing is adapted to surround thegenerator and the back portion of the shafting. The casing maybesomewhat spherical, and the lid portion may be fastened by means ofsuitable screws and lugs 31, whereby it may be removed as occasion maydemand. A plate 32 may be removably attached to the casing to cover theend of the shaft and the thrustbearing bushings for the purpose oflubrication, repair, and adjustment, as occasion may demand. V The coils35 of the field-magnets are shown mounted upon their bodies 36, whichare carried by a spider 37, secured to the shaft 11 by means of a hub 38and set-screw 39. Thus it will be seen that upon the current of airpassing through and against the vanes the wheels will be rotated inopposite directions.

' The shafts 11 and 12 will also be rotated in opposite directions andin many cases in substantial unison, whereby the field-magnets andarmature will be rotated in opposite directions. It will thus beapparent that for a given velocity of wind and rotation of thedriving-wheel the relative velocity of the rotation of the armature willbe doubled. A further useful feature will be observed from the fact thatall the weight of the field-magnets and the armature are available forpurposes of momentum, &c., and consequently acting somewhat after theanalogy of a balance-wheel. The current will be taken from thecommutator by suitable brushes 40 and 41, respectively, supported byarms 42 43, secured to the frame 29. In my aforesaid United StatesLetters Patent the wind-wheels are shown upon the side of the frame orsupport away from the Wind, whereby the wind applied to the wheels orvanes keeps-the same in the Wind, obviating the necessity of a specialvain for such purpose, and being mounted so as to overhang the point ofsupport it is necessary generally to counterbalance. In the present casethe generator and easing will afford a sufficient counterbalance forthis purpose. Owing to the fact heretofore alluded to of the universalmotion of the shafts, the current cannot be taken directly from thebrushes and carried by continuous wires to'the point of its utilizationor distribution. In the present instance the lead-wires 44 and 45 runfrom the respective brushes and are carried out of the trunnions throughpivot-screws 46 and are carried down the sides of the yoke 15 bysuitable supports 47, where they are secured to binding-screws 48,connecting with roller-contacts 49, one of which contacts is adapted torun upon a track 50 and the other of which can run upon a track 51,concentric to the axis of the pintle 17. The tracks are connected bybinding-screws 52 53, respectively, with the line-wires 54 55. It willthus be apparent that the movement upon the horizontal axis will notmaterially affect the wire, there being sufficient elasticity in it topermit it to yield to the slight movement upon the horizontal axis andthe track and contact connection will permit the movement about thevertical axis, whereby the current may be readily taken from thegenerator and carried to the point of distribution or utilizationwithout twisting the wires or recourse to exposed parts. The trackconnections, &c., are shown suitably housed by a cap 56.

Certain features illustrated herein are claimed in my copendingapplication, Serial No. 215,566, filed July 7, 1904.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes indetails may be resorted to as practice may demand without de partingfrom the spirit and scope of my invention.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. In a windmill, thecombination with a pair of concentrically-mounted shafts, vanes set inopposite directions and carried by said shafts respectively, an electricgenerator comprising an armature and field-magnets, and mountedrespectively upon said shafts, whereby upon the passage of the currentof air through the:

vanes the armature and field-magnets will be rotated in oppositedirections respectively.

2. In a windmill, the combination with a pair of shafts, one having abearing within the other, wind-wheels mounted upon said shafts andadapted for opposite rotation, a universal joint for supporting saidshafts, and an electric generator adapted to be operated by said shaftsand carried by the universal joint.

3. The combination in a windmill, of a pair of shafts one mounted withinthe other and concentric to each other, a bearing to support the same, atrunnion for the bearing and having a substantially horizontal axis, ayoke supporting the trunnion, a pivot for the yoke upon a substantiallyvertical axis, an electric generator having its armature connected toone shaft and its field-magnets to the other shaft, a casing for suchgenerator carried by the trunnion, brushes carried by the casing,lead-wires running from the brushes through openings in the trunnions, ahousing below the yoke, a pair of concentric tracks within 'suchhousing, binding-postsconnected to the respective tracks, line-wiresleading to the binding-posts, arms carried by the yoke and entering thehousing and carrying contactwheels running upon the respective tracks,and binding-posts for connecting the respective lead-wires to saidroller-contacts, wind-wheels upon the respective shafts adapted forrotation in opposite directions, and a vane carried by the bearing tooscillate the same upon its horizontal axis.

.4. In a windmill, the combination with airpropelled means, of shaftingcarrying the same, and an electric generator directly connected to saidshafting, said electric generator comprisingan armature andfield-magnets respectively rotatable in opposite directions.

5. A windmill comprising a standard, a pair of wind-wheels adapted forrotation in opposite directions, bearings for said wheels, a universalconnection between said bearings and standard, an electric generatorcarried by said universal connection and having an armature andfield-magnets adapted for rota: tion in opposite directions andrespectively direotly connected to the said wheels.

6. In a windmill the combination with a windwheel, a universal joint forsupporting said wheel, and an electric generator directly connected tosaid wheel and carried by said universal joint.

7. The combination in a windmill,of a standard, a wind-wheel, a bearingto support the same, a trunnion for the bearing and having asubstantially horizontal axis, a yoke supporting the trunnion, a pivotfor the yoke and carried by the standard upon a substantially verticalaxis, a pair of concentric tracks fast tothe standard, line-wiresleading to the tracks, arms carried by the yoke and carryingcontact-wheels running upon the respective tracks, an electric generatordirectly connected to the wind-wheeLa casing for such generatorcarriedby the trunnion, lead-wires same, a trunnion for the bearing and havinga substantially horizontal axis, a yoke supporting the trunnion, a pivotfor the yoke carried by the standard upon a substantially vertical axis,an electric generator connected to said wind-wheel and carried by thetrunnion, brushes carried by the casing, lead-wires running from thebrushes, a housing below the yoke and opening downwardly, a pair ofconcentric tracks within such housing, line- Wires connected to therespective tracks, arms carried by the yoke and bending into the housingand carrying contact-wheels running upon the respective tracks andcarrying said lead-Wires, and means for connecting the lead-wires tosaid roller-contacts, and a vane carried by the bearing-block tooscillate the same upon its horizontal axis.

Signed at Nos. 9 to 15 Murray street, New York, N. Y., this 17th day ofJune, 1904.

ALFRED ,FORNAN DER. Witnesses:

CHAS. LYON RussELL, JOHN O. SEIFERT.

